Acting can be a transformative process, both literally and figuratively. Actor Sebstian Stan can speak to that reality on two different fronts, as the 2024 movie schedule sees the MCU vet becoming a practical chameleon in both A Different Man and The Apprentice. When it comes to the Donald Trump historical drama, that transformation was pretty extensive, as the man who will reprise the role of Bucky Barnes in the upcoming MCU movie Thunderbolts* rapidly gained weight in order to play The Donald.
The actor spoke to this in conversation with Variety on behalf of both pictures preparing to be released to the public over the course of the next month. When the discussion surrounding The Apprentice’s pre-release buzz came around, Stan mentioned that when director Ali Abbasi was getting ready to finally shoot the long developing project, he asked the Captain America actor about the scope of weight gain he could realistically take on.
Responding to that question in the interview, Sebastian Stan had this answer to offer:
You’d be surprised. You can gain a lot of weight in two months.
Sebastian Stan - THR
When running down the figures of this brief bulk up, The Apprentice lead clocked his final result as coming in at 15 lbs within those two months. Though that may not be terribly surprising when compared to Mark Wahlberg’s Father Stu weight gain, it’s still pretty shocking when going from the physique of a superhero to that of a controversial real estate developer/former president.
So what exactly does the finished result look like? Well, if you watch The Apprentice’s current trailer, you’ll get plenty of looks at Sebastian Stan’s portrayal of Donald Trump. But for the purpose of this report, I’m going to include an image from one of those moments below:
I hope for Mr. Stan’s sake, he didn’t have to endure as disgusting of an experience as Mark Wahlberg’s “miserable” Father Stu diet. While that was the key to The Union actor’s safe weight gain process, I’d like to think that in the years since that production, there’s been further development of a careful, yet not tasteless diet that Sebastian Stan could have used.
Though you can probably bet that the press rounds for The Apprentice will include questions about that very subject. I’d especially anticipate that line of questioning when looking at how production on this awards contender wrapped roughly a month before Thunderbolts* went into action.
We’ll see what happens in the lead-up to The Apprentice’s October 11th launch in domestic theaters. Before that, Sebastian Stan fans will be able to see him in A Different Man, which opens at the box office this weekend in limited release. And, of course, those who want to reunite with James Buchanan Barnes before Thunderbolts* storms into the multiplex, a Disney+ subscription will give you the keys to that metaphorical motorcycle of merriment.
